558 MAMMALIA. 



have perished with her, had not she, collecting all her strength, 

 and desperate in her anxiety and tenderness, thrown it with a 

 fast-failing arm, on to a high branch, and in this way succeeded 

 in preserving it from the unhappy fate which befell herself. 



Four or five species of Howling Monkeys are known, and all 

 are natives of Columbia, Guiana, Brazil, and Paraguay. 



They are chiefly found on the banks of the great rivers, such as 

 the Orinoco, the Magdalene, &c. 



Genus Lagothrix. — The Lagothrixes (Hair- tailed ]\Ionkej's) are 

 smaller and not so robust as the Howlers ; they have also a feebler 

 voice. They live in troops in the forests of Columbia, Peru, and 

 Brazil, and are very gentle, intelligent, and easily tamed ; it is 

 even said that thej^ are capable of affection for the person who 

 is kind to them. They have a soft coat, and stand well on their 

 hind-legs. 



Griiiis Eriodea. — The Eriodes are distinguished from the other 

 Amei'ican Monkeys by their nostrils, which are less apart than 

 in the majority, by the absence or rudimentary state of the 

 thumb in the anterior extremities, and by their nails, which are 

 compressed and sharp like claws. Their habits are little known ; 

 all that is certain about them being that they live in bands, and 

 that their chattering voices are heard during the greater part of 

 the day. Three species exist, and are found in Brazil. 



Genus Ateks. — With the Ateles, as with the Eriodes, the anterior 

 thumb does not exist, or, which is very rare, it is represented as a 

 simple tubercle without any nail. It is this character which gives 

 the name to the genus, Atele (from the Greek areAf;;), meaning 

 imperfect or incomplete. Their nostrils are altogether lateral, 

 and their nails semi-cylindrical, as in nearly all the Monkeys. In 

 addition, their hair is long and silky, while that of the Eriodes is 

 short and woolly. 



The Ateles (Fig. 246) are recognisable by the excessive length 

 and slenderness of their limbs, which, in addition to their slow 

 and measured gait, has procured for them the denomination of 

 Spider Monkeys. Like the Monkeys of the three preceding 

 genera, they have the tail very developed, and callous at the point. 

 With it they seize and carry towards them objects placed behind 

 them without making the slightest bodily movement, and without 

 the eyes co-operating in any way in this action. Is. Geoffrey 



